We recently started a Instagram account for the forum and want to share pictures from all the people who would like to share photos not all photos will be shared but some photos will be chosen to be posted each week if we can get enough participants but if pictures come in kinda slow we might only post the best photo of the week! So looking forward to seeing anything you guys got even if it's a old picture doesn't have to be anything current!
For those of you with Instagram accounts follow the page @Freemygreenpdx

Hey guys how's things going fishing season is right around the corner and I haven't gone fishing in a couple years! This year im getting back into fishing as a means of keeping more food in the house! Plus I really enjoy eating trout
Does anyone else on here go fishing or did you used to go fishing? Where are some of your favorite places to go fishing? Do you fish trout or bass, or maybe even ocean fish?

Today's topic is all about the Mulch Layer!
What is the mulch layer?
In living organic soil having a mulch layer is a pretty key part of making the whole system work in Harmony! So what is it? Well, the mulch layer acts as a ground cover to protect the soil and microorganisms from weather conditions. This layer consists primarily of brown and greens just like in a compost pile.
I have mentioned the use of cover crops and they definitely play a roll in the mulch layer, usually when you do a chop and drop what your doing is chopping down the cover crop and laying it on the soil and then covering with browns such as, worm castings, barley straw or compost, anytime you cover the cover crop with worm castings or compost I recommend covering that with a layer of barley straw to help prevent the worm castings/ compost from drying out. This is the beginning of the mulch layer and it will continue to grow but also what happens is your mulch layer will break down and create a rich nutrient source for your plants. As this mulch layer breaks down you will want to build it up again you can use all kinds of things for green matter some of them are comfrey, horsetail, nettles, even blackberry branches and leafs can work but also anytime you clean out the lower canopy of your plants you can just use the leafs from the plants to return nutrients to the plants.
So in addition to using the mulch layer to build your soil and protect your soil and microorganisms, this will also help with watering as you will have to water less with a proper mulch layer. Now, why do you water less? Well, the answer is simple better water retention. When you have a mulch layer it helps moisture from leaving the soil in addition since there is a constant decomposition process going on there will be fungal growth in the soil and fungal growth also aid's in water retention and distribution!
If you try to do a living organic soil set up without a mulch layer you will be missing out on a lot of benefits!
The idea of a mulch layer is taken from nature if you observe a forest floor there is a constant mulch layer being built up! The forest manages itself in a very beautiful way if you observe you will notice the forest floors typically have their own cover crop and mulch layer that's just made up naturally! What you will observe if you dig in the forest floor is a decomposition layer that consists usually of plants matter or leafs and wood this gives you the green and browns that will work together to break down and increase the soil health and return nutrients another thing you will notice in the forest is under that layer of mulch on the forest floor you will find rich forest humus! This humus created by the natural decomposition process is what helps to feed the forests and all the plants within them!
So, in conclusion, I highly recommend anyone wanting to try living organic soil to start with a cover crop and then start to build your mulch layer when the cover crop is ready to be chopped if you keep this going there will be a constant breakdown of nutrients and ultimately will need less and less inputs over time!
If you have any questions about building a mulch layer feel free to leave a message in this thread and I'll gladly get back to you!

You can also get any of the organic goodies you may want like aloe, coconut, neem and karanja oil, malted barley like basically anything I tell you to use in this thread can be aquired through buildasoil and they have very high quality standards for all there Organic inputs

@Tentoes1962
Also another thing with the builds soil mix is it's alot easier to maintain plant health with minimal inputs he actually has a water only soil if your looking for something like that but yeah definitely go the buildasoil route you won't regret it

Absolutely do not use fox farm soil or products they are pure garbage and completely inconsistent. If you are not able to mix soil yourself due to health or physical handicaps the absolutely best soil I can recommend is gonna be from Buildasoil.com they have very quick shipping and all there soil is made of high quality organic inputs and has a overall higher quality then any other bagged soil you can buy. You can get there living organic soil mix and there soil recipe is very similar to mine with some differences but that would be my number 1 best option if you are unable to make it yourself then definitely recommend ordering from buildasoil.com his prices are also very reasonable for the quality of soil! So if you have bought the fox farm already if the bags not opened I'd recommend returning it,
Another thing on the side of treating your soil with neem oil I don't recommend using neem oil as a soil drench if you want to do something like that which would be more benificial I'd recommend looking at my recipe for neem meal and kelp meal tea that is in this thread, one of the absolutely best recipes for using neem in a soil drench application and there is a big difference between neem meal and neem oil use the oil on the leafs and the meal for the soil!

Hey guys how's it going I decided to start a new thread because this year I'm changing things up! Last year I planted in pots and my root space was restricted so this year I'm digging out my garden space which is 6x6 and I'm gonna be digging it 1 foot deep. Today I got some progress made so here's a look at today's progress! Getting started!
VID_65220123_113611_212.mp4

The next segment is gonna be on Shredders!
This section is gonna cover some basic information about soil life of Shredders that help break down the organic nutrients for our plants to eat. As most of you know when you are growing organically you are relying on the soil food web! Part of that soil food web is the Shredders that process our mulch layer. The mulch layer is constantly in need of being broken down to help release nutrients into the soil and create a nice rich humic layer!
Shredders help with this process in several ways but first let's get to know a few examples of shredders.
Anthropods are one of the biggest types of shredders and there are alot of different anthropods a few examples would be springtails, beetles, ants, sowbugs, centipedes/millipedes as well as some mites but worms are also a type of shredder and definitely one we should all be taking advantage of in Organics! Not all anthropods are benificial to your garden however so depending on where you live get familiar with the plant pests in your area! There are places that specialize in getting you the right benificial insects you need for your garden and your particular needs, these are the best people to talk to about what's best for your area especially if they are local to you.
So now to mention a few of the different ways Shredders help you in the garden first and foremost as mentioned before shredders will eat organic material and help break it down for smaller Organisms to digest and process into plant available form of nutrients. Also the shredders help with moving around bacteria and fungi within the soil which helps with aerating the soil as well as distributing the fungi and bacteria to more beneficial parts of the root zone while at the same time maintaining the organisms within the soil to keep everything in balance. When you have a healthy balanced soil largely that is because of the micro organisms that have helped with that process and all of them have a equally important role in the garden. This is a basic overview of Shredders and their functions in the soil food web. For more information on the soil food web I'd recommend two books one is called teaming with microbes and one Is teaming with nutrients fantastic books with tons of information if you have any questions about micro organisms feel free to leave a comment and I'll gladly do my best to answer any questions you have!
Thanks for reading the last part of micro organisms I got more good stuff coming up in the future but if you guys have any requests feel free to let me know something you would like to hear about.